Week One

Alright, I have officially completed in-country orientation (althought experiential orientation defintely begins now, full force) and have started getting into my placements. I have met with the youth director, Chris, at Fortwilliam & Macrory Presbyterian Church, and we get along really well. He has a lot of great ideas that I'm excited about helping to implement. The pastor, Lesley, and I get along well, too, and she introduced me to my first "Ulster Fry" this morning. (It's a breakfast that puts anything at IHOP to shame!) She and Chris seem to work well together, and are on the same page about a lot of things pertaining to youth and young adult ministry; I'm so glad to be able to plug in with them.

Much of my time is also spent just getting to know Belfast. I have successfully crossed the road without the aid of a crosswalk (although they have plenty of those) and between the way people drive here--let's call it "excited"--and the fact that they are driving on the opposite side of the road from what I'm used to, this is quite a feat. I have also successfully navigated the bus system (riding double-deckers!), found my way to and from my placement sites (all within walking distance), gotten the flat to feel homey (my flatmates are AMAZING!) and am slowly getting my ear attuned to the accent and inflection of the local dialect. It isn't so much the accent that proves difficult as it is the coloquialisms and words. Some of them can really get you into trouble, too. For instance, where in the States you would say you're full from eating, here, to be full means you're quite drunk. Also, "pants" are underwear; trousers (or jeans) are the clothing that goes over them. To have a roomate means you quite literally share your room; during introductions I made the mistake of telling a pastor that Nathaniel and Phen were my roomates. I was quickly corrected to "housemates" or "flatmates." And the one we can't quite figure out is craic (pronounced "crack.") Things can be "good craic", a person can be "good craic", or you can ask, "What's the craic?" Aside from the fact that it sounds like people are asking about "crack" which is, of course, an illegal street drug, we're slowly figuring out what part of speech craic is and how we are to use it.

All in all, I'm having a fabulous time. My contact info is below so feel free to write me! Another update is coming soon; hopefully a brief history, so keep an eye out. Also, pictures will be up soon, as well. Thanks for the interest and support! God Bless!